He leans back in his chair, arms crossed, teeth pulling at a piercing in his lower lip.
“Which is?”
I shrug.
“They all think I’m the spoiled, lonely succubus that all the boys like, and none of the boys love.”
“Well, are you?” he asks.
“Spoiled?”
“Lonely,” he corrects.
I’m quiet for a moment as I contemplate his question.
I forget how shockingly disarming Elliot can be when he isn’t teasing me. Those gorgeous green eyes are always fixing me with a truly penetrating stare, as if he could pry the truth from between my teeth by simply commanding my mouth to open. And, perhaps more shocking, is the fact that I do.
“Sometimes,” I admit. “But I don’t really mind.”
He nods as if confirming a long-held suspicion.
“Yeah, me either.”
His gaze moves to the rug beneath his feet, and I stare at him for a moment, wondering how we got here.
I like to think that Elliot and I are friends. Real friends. But I’d be lying if I said that friendship is more than surface-level, at best. Sure, we joke, and we chat. But only ever about books or music, or whatever pack gossip is running rampant through Crescent House at the moment. We never really talk about anything…important.
So as his solemn expression finds my eyes, I can’t help but feel like he’s seeing me naked for the first time.
Chapter12
Cheese Fries
IRIS
“I should go.It’s getting late.”
Elliot cocks his head.
“You haven’t eaten yet,” he says.
“It’s alright. I’m not hungry.”
He chuckles through his nose, a faint grin curling at the corners of his mouth as he rolls his eyes.
“You’re a bad liar, you know that?”
“No, I’m not.”
His grin widens.
“Yes, you are. I can smell you from here.”
“Ew.” I press my thighs together. “I hate when you say that.”
“Why? You smell amazing.”
He demonstrates his dedication by sucking in a deep breath, and I shift in my seat as he groans, but I make no move to stand.
